₦airaland Forum

akwukwo!
If 10 people from liberia enter naija airport tomorrow....who go stop them?

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Nigerian Memory lane

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3D-uCcUukuU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3D-uCcUukuU&list=UULJktIVwG1DnIFE1TlXFH4w

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IL-8CGs9bfc&list=PLm2A_Jdbg98ipInq4VHsTAwORd0OWgF87

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDjuGy2cWDY&list=PLm2A_Jdbg98ipInq4VHsTAwORd0OWgF87

http://smileandmobile.com/2014/07/08/interview-with-krystle-obasi-co-founder-of-studysear-ch/

Krystle Obasi, a young dynamic female is the Co-founder of StudySearch; an easy and affordable platform for Nigerians to apply to study in the UK. Here, all the relevant information required to make a successful application is available for prospective students, their parents and sponsors on one single platform. StudySear.ch matches prospective applicants with universities and courses based on their budget, field of interest and other key factors. Krystle has lived and studied in both Nigeria and the U.K. She is passionate about using technology and digital media to ensure people worldwide have access to skills and opportunities to improve their future outlook. In 2012 Krystle was selected as a Global Change-maker for the British Council and previously worked with the Labor party using digital technology to optimize communication between the party and local constituents. We reached out to her to discuss this new start-up, below is the interview

http://smileandtalk.com/category/web-personalities/


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G36Xr6wc8dI&list=UUl3PwCk8l3ceh3FpaTDj8Ug


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=esMlb05TnT4


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UliYVncZ4E4&list=PLm2A_Jdbg98ipInq4VHsTAwORd0OWgF87


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMpwLsolsgM


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X9Tbr63NQxo&list=UUDh376mjgBM9l2PD12CYQJw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngvgQDQwylU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NK74435PCLM

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Smile and Mobile - The African Tech Blog

http://smileandmobile.com/2013/12/27/american-solar-energy-companies-look-to-africa-to-land-the-big-deals-fenixinternational/


Solar energy in America will for now continue to be a concept embraced only by the environmentally conscious individual. It is more expensive than traditional energy, and does not generate enough Kilowatts for the average Americans, Gas guzzling, power hoarding needs. The sounds of “drill baby drill” are still louder than “save the environment”……………. for now However, In Africa any solar powered product could easily find success in the mass market. Hence, if you are a manufacturer of Solar powered products, you should look no further than the African market to grow your business and make your millions. The rapidly rising African middle class have grown tired of depending on many pathetic Government energy initiatives, and are looking for solutions that would allow them to divorce themselves from the madness.

DISCUSS THIS ARTICLE IN OUR FORUM

A number of American entrepreneurs have taken advantage of this, and today we want to tell you about one of them, Fenix International. Fenix International is a venture-backed renewable energy company based in California, and they are the innovators and creators behind the ReadySet Renewable Energy System. This portable system is easily charged from solar panels, and can be used to power lights, phones, radios or televisions etc. This rugged durable platform, also offers you the option to power the system with a bicycle generator or a wall adaptor.

The Company recently inked a Deal with MTN UGANDA to provide their solution to Ugandans living off the grid in the country. They are calling this service Readypay. With ReadyPay, Ugandans in rural areas have the option to own the kit on a pay as you go basis. The more they pay the more power they have access to, until they own the kit outright.

This is a great example of American entrepreneurs making money while providing a great service in Africa. Making money and helping the environment does not have to be mutually exclusive, and Fenix international has proved just that. Something to think about ………………………….Stay Mobile!

it is definitely viable....the constant marketing however gets very annoying

smileandmobile.com/2013/12/10/can-you-still-make-money-with-the-gsmsms-short-codes-in-africa

If you have ever watched American Idol or Dancing with the stars, I am sure you have heard of SMS short codes. You have probably used a shortcode to vote for your favorite dancer or singer. It went something like this; “to vote for Kelly Clarkson dial ‘55544’”. You type in the number and wait to see if she advanced to the next stage…YAY! This number you typed is known as a short code and in case you don’t know, every time you dial that code you are charged!

In America, the use of short codes are primarily limited to vote-in shows or charity donations etc. However, in Africa the short code business is on STEROIDS! I just got back from a trip to Nigeria, and every 5 minutes I would receive a text message on my Etisalat phone telling me to dial a different shortcode. I would see things like: “Text 33444 in order to get bible verses”, or “text 445566 to find your husband”, or “text ‘score’ to 65666 to get game stats”.

The marketing is consistent and relentless, and it does not seem like there is a way to stop these annoying messages. The reason it is such a hot business in Nigeria, is because every time you send a text, 50-100 Naira is deducted from your charge card! Lets do the math, 150 Million people in Nigeria, if 1% of the users somehow are fooled into texting your short code, that would 1.5M * 100. You would make a cool 150 Million Naira! Of course all that money does not come to you, it is shared between you the entrepreneur, the Phone service provider (etisalat, MTN, sprint, Verizon etc) and the Value added service provider (USshortcodes, textnigeria etc). Start up costs are substantial, but once you are up and running…… ching ching!

So if I know Africa, and I think I do, the number of annoying short codes hitting African mobile phones in in the coming years will only increase. This is one of those rare occasion when we at Smile and Mobile hope the growth of the GSM short code business will not ………………………………….Stay Mobile!

http://smileandmobile.com/2013/12/03/east-african-exchange-does-its-first-trade-as-the-african-commodity-trading-market-takes-form/

Last month the East African Exchange had their first Commodities auction, bringing the spotlight to the commodity trading industry in Africa. Located in Kigali Rwanda, the East African Exchange (EAX) is not the first Commodity exchange. There are others, such as the Abuja Securities and Commodities exchange (Nigeria), Makola Agriculture exchange (Ghana), South African Futures Exchange, Bourse Africa (Formely Global board), Africa Mercantile Exchange (Kenya), Ethiopia Commodity exchange, Agriculture commodity exchange of Africa (Malawi), Auction holding Commodity Exchange (Malawi) and Mercantile Exchange of Madagascar

However, thanks to some very strong partnerships, the EAX does seem to be the one that shows the most promise. Powered by the NASDAQ OMX -Xstream system, EAX provides the opportunity for farmers and speculators alike to trade commodities from the comfort of their offices. This is important, because it is the next step in ensuring the growth of the underutilized African agriculture Market.

RELATED ARTICLE – Nigerian Stock Exchange Adapts NASDAQOMX X-Stream Trading platform

In America, farming is big business. If you have time, take a trip to Iowa or anywhere else in middle america and take a gander at the vast farmlands, high tech farming techniques and the upper middle class farmers that operate them!

Agriculture exports represent more than 100 Billion dollars in revenue annually, and are responsible for hiring over a million people in the county. African economies could definitely use numbers like this! The business of farming is also closely related to the commodities trading business.

Discuss this article in our Forum

Let me explain, Say you are a farmer that grows corn, you want to be able to guarantee yourself revenue for sale of your crops by the time the crops are harvested. In America, the way to do this is to sell a Corn futures contract on the commodity exchange. A futures contract is an agreement to sell a particular amount of product at a particular price. If at the time the corn is to be delivered, the price has fallen you would have saved money by selling it on the exchange. If it has risen you would have lost some money, but for farmers it is still better to have the guaranteed revenue. This type of financial Activity is severely lacking in many African Countries and that is what Exchanges like the EAX are trying to fix.

EAX is a subsidiary of the African Exchange holdings (AFEX). AFEX was formed through a partnership of Heirs Holding, Berggruen Holdings and 50 ventures, and their goal is to strengthen Commodity Exchanges across the continent. A worthy project that if done right will create wealth for millions of Africans. Let us hope it is done right, let us hope that the parties involved understand that everybody can win if it is done right, let us hope they are interested in legacy and not just profitability. Only time will tell, but for now we will continue to ………………………..Stay Mobile!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7615byq3ZHM

What aboUt all the churches and people thaT didnt make it....let us stop trying to find meaning in everything

phlame: As Typhoon Haiyan tore through the Philippines, it caused destruction on an unprecedented scale, tearing up homes and causing families to flee its violent path.

However, one survivor continued to stand tall with arms outstretched-- a giant statue of Jesus Christ that escaped unscathed from the natural disaster.

Though Haiyan erased entire towns from the map, Jesus remains upright, casting a protective gaze over the coastal town of Tanauan, in the central Philippines.

Pope Francis urged Catholics worldwide to pray for the victims of the typhoon that ravaged the Philippines, which has the largest number of Catholics in Asia.

The preservation of the statue has served as a symbol of hope to those still struggling to survive the typhoon's wounds, which left around 5,000 dead, according to recent death tolls.

Miracle, or simply coincidence?

SOURCE http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/15/jesus-statue-typhoon_n_4284415.html?1384553100&ncid=webmail17

When Steve Jobs left Apple unceremoniously in the 1980s, he jumped into the world of animation, where he founded Pixar Animation studios, a move that would make him a billionaire before his return to apple computer more than a decade later . Fast forward to 2013 and creators in Africa are animating their way to wealth and prosperity. In Kenya, animation studios are growing in number, and the quality of the production is world class. Studios like Recon digital Animation have been creating quality animation short films while telling great african stories.



The African home grown entertainment industry has been massively successful in the past 20 years, and this success has not gone unnoticed by corporations. Today in Kenya, advertising dollars have been funneled into various animation studios, as corporations attempt to create a buzz.

RELATED ARTICLE: Gaming industry in Nigeria. Is Maliyo Games the next Zynga?

Studios like Afrikana Digital animation, and Fatboy animations have been enjoying the benefits of this new interest in Animation.


http://smileandmobile.com/2013/11/16/in-kenya-3d-animation-takes-center-stage/


DISCUSS THIS ARTICLE IN OUR FORUM

Fatboy Animations studio is believed to handle about 6 projects a month with each project bringing in a minimum of $22,800. An amazing feat for the 3 year old company and its 26 year old founder, Michael Muthiga. Goes to show you that if you do what you love, you do it it well, and you do it consistently. Eventually people will start paying you for it.

Pixar Animation, Walt Disney, Dreamworks………………afrikana digital? Who knows, in the future we could be mentioning a few African studios in that line. Anything is possible, as long as you…………………………………………..Stay Mobile!

Last month we told you how the Nigerian Stock Exchange has upgraded their software to the NASDAQ OMX X-Stream platform. This move made them the fastest trading engine in Africa. Well this week let me tell you about how a Nigerian Tech Entrepreneur is looking to give all financial data platforms a run for their money, right here in the USA, with a new startup Thinknum.

Thinknum organizes the worlds Financial Data, and makes them readily available to analyze on a web platform. The semantic web is making it easier to scour the internet for for publicly available datasets, and Thinknum is taking full advantage of this.

With Macro data, Company specific data and market data together in one place on the web, Thinknum users have the ability to perform analysis that was previously only available to people willing to shell out the big bucks for a bloomberg terminal.

If you are a financial techie like myself, then you have probably visited sites like yahoo finance to look at charts, moving averages, bollinger bands yada yada yada (you have probably also made some really bad decisions with those charts, damn you candle stick patterns!). These sites are ok, but my beef with them is that you cannot perform any analysis across datasets. In addition, you are not sure what magical calculations are happening in the background.

The Genius of Thinknum is that the platform allows the user write simple expressions to manipulate multiple datasets. These will then be plotted on their proprietary web application. Example, typing the function correl (GS,MS) returns the correlation between Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs.

Then you can string these functions together with mathematical operators to form an expression: correl(correl(gs,ms),hist_vol(gs))-correl(correl(gs,ms),hist_vol(ms))

The above expression plots a chart that shows how the Correlation between Goldman and Microsoft is correlated with the historical volatility of Goldman Sachs and the difference between the…………….. (you get the idea!) you can manipulate the data with simple expressions!!! ……….. try doing that with yahoo

Not too shabby from a young African Entrepreneur. The internet is the great equalizer. It has given people access to goods previously reserved for a select few. It has created opportunities for innovators willing to brave the risky road of entrepreneurship. The guys at Thinknum are creating a new space, and it has tremendous upside. With the company’s steady rise they will undoubtedly face fierce competition, but I am sure the young founder of Thinknum, Gregrory Ugwi, wouldn’t have it any other way…………………………………….Stay Mobile!

http://smileandmobile.com/2013/10/15/nigerian-stock-exchange-migrates-to-nasdaq-omx-trading-platform-becomes-fastest-trading-system-in-africa/


The Nigerian Stock exchange (NSE) has come a long way in the last 10 years. The NSE was first launched in 1960 as the Lagos Stock exchange, and for the first 39 years of its existence the growth rate was at an abysmal crawl. In 1999, the stock exchange got a technological boost when they switched from open outcry to Automated Trading System (ATS). ATS is a system where dealers trade through a network of computers connected to a server. In open outcry, stocks are executed by traders yelling out orders in the stock exchange pit (Think Eddie Murphy and Dan Ackroyd in Trading places).



This month the NSE made another huge technological leap, when they migrated to NASDAQ OMX X-Stream Trading platform. This is a huge step, and further enhances Nigeria’s goal to become Africa’s financial Capital. With this new multi asset trading platform, the NSE hopes to achieve a market capitalization of $1trillion. The system is also expected to be the fastest trading engine in Africa.



I worked on a trading desk in Nigeria back in 2007. I remember there were clear cases of arbitrage in the market. Brokers made money by calling banks to obtain bond quotes and then immediately reselling those bonds at massive spreads. Those type of opportunities are always present in any emerging market, where pricing information is limited. The fact that most of these gAps are closing, is evidence of Nigerias maturity in the market. With this migration to X-stream the NSE hopes to provide live stock prices which will bolster the available financial information for traders. There is also talks of adding an options and futures market. These steps should increase the players in the Nigerian financial markets and help more companies raise the funds necessary for growth. Of course with new complicated financial products comes the added problem of valuation and accounting shenanigans, but that story is for an entirely different blog entry Check back with us in about a year, I am sure we will have a blog entry about how companies are hiding their derivative instrument losses! Financial history always repeats itself, even as the technology…………………………… stays mobile!

http://smileandmobile.com/2013/10/31/ghanaian-startup-makes-it-all-the-way-to-silicon-valley-dropifi/


If you are reading this article on our website http://www.smileandmobile.com, you will notice a little “Contact Us” widget off to the right side of this page. This little thing expands when you put your mouse over it, and it allows site visitors to quickly send questions to the webmaster or owners of the website.



That little applet is known as Dropifi, and it was created by a Ghanaian Startup that recently joined the 500 startups Program.

500 Startups is a highly selective program in Silicon valley that provides early-stage companies with access to a startup Accelerator program, and up to $250K in funding. It brings young entrepreneurs together, and matches them with tech mentors and investors that will help them grow their business



The idea is pretty cool, and it all but renders the “contact us” tab on the home bar obsolete, but there is more to it. Dropifi also has analysis tools that give the website owners the ability to understand the profile of the person leaving the message. The messages are also automatically channeled to the right person in the firm based on predetermined rules. It is very easy to install, we used the dropify wordpress plugin and it took less than 3 minutes to install!



Folks we are at a crossroads in African Technology. You see for the longest time African Startup activity has been one directional. It comprised of African entrepreneurs either at home or abroad that implement ideas specifically for Africa. Now we regularly see African Entrepreneurs implementing ideas that could be used outside of africa! Now that is pretty cool, and it shows that young African techies are not sticking with the status quo. They are ready for change, and they know that the secret to growth is to always ……………………………….Stay Mobile!

http://smileandmobile./2013/09/24/interswitch-now-accepts-visa-as-nigerian-payment-processors-jostle-for-position/

Interswitch is the numero uno payment Gateway in Nigeria (although ETRANZACT might have something to say about that!). With the infrastructure they have in place, Nigerians and surrounding African countries have been able to integrate e-payments onto their websites, and the companies growth has been essential for the growth of e-commerce in Nigeria. Interswitch recently completed payment processing integration with VISA, and with this move the company now accepts all major brands; Verve, Mastercard, Discover and now VISA. Given the massive local obstacles, such as inconsistent power supply, this feat is very impressive. In America, we often take for granted the complexity of the EFT networks that allow us make payments online from the comfort of our rooms. The payment systems are seamless with few hiccups or downtime. This is not always the case in Nigeria. I remember purchasing an airline ticket online in Nigeria way back in 2009. The payment was deducted from my account but the network went down before the ticket was issued. (Don’t ask, that was what they told me!!) Systems have vastly improved since 2009 but you still run into little hiccups, and improvements will only come with increased competition, and competition can only arise with increased investment. In America, competing EFT networks and the large volume of online users led to lower fees and a plethora of payment services. There are two types of EFT networks; Regional and National. Companies like Mastercard and Visa have national networks that connect banks, ATMs, users and merchants together seamlessly. While NYCE, Star, Pulse, Shazam are popular regional networks.

At Smile and Mobile we like to do comparisons between the developed and the developing world. A[b]frican countries have the some of the fastest growing economies in the world, and we want to keep them on their toes. So how does Nigeria compare in terms of infrastructure? Is Interswitch and Etranzact comparable to NYCE and Star? Not really, but we can’t really blame these companies, the Nigerian Interbank Settlement System PLC is responsible for payment infrastructure in the country, and we all know in Africa, where Government goes, innovation follows (100 years later!).[/b] So infrastructure will always be hard, it requires Capital and African Government (Good luck with that). However, a large number of Third party payment processors are popping up all over the country. Companies like Eyowo, Cash Envoy, Paga, are trying to be the Paypals and Google Checkouts in the country. The people have the entrepreneurial spirit to make things happen, the Government just needs invest or get out of their way so that these companies and others can …………………………Stay Mobile!

http://smileandmobile./2013/09/17/blackberry-waves-the-white-flag-releasing-messenger-bbm-for-iphone-and-android/

In the early part of the decade Blackberry ruled the world. They were new, they were happening, they were an essential part of any businessman or woman’s toolkit. These innovative, sleek devices allowed individuals stay up to date on emails, and appointments better than any other phone on the market. The keypad was great for sending texts at lightning speed. Anybody who was important had one, and having a blackberry showed that you were a successful businessman/woman on the go. Fast Forward to 2013, Samsung and the Apple phones can pretty much do everything the BB can do and much more. Owning a blackberry now is an indication that you are clearly clueless. Most of the world switched away, but in Africa Blackberry is still holding strong. Why? one reason and one reason only, Blackberry Messenger (BBM). Blackberry messenger allowed people with blackberry devices to send messages to each other for free. This feature bears little importance in America since all phone plans offer unlimited text. However, in Africa texting cost money, so for most of the population BBM is the cheapest solution. It is also a low cost way for Africans in the diaspora to stay connected with family in Africa. Well by the end of the week Blackberry will be releasing BBM for Android and Iphone. There is officially no longer any reason to own a blackberry. This move seems to indicate that blackberry is waving the white flag in the mobile phone market. They are packing it in folks, maybe they can focus on software

Once upon a time Blackberry ruled the world, and today they don’t because they got complacent and forgot to follow the golden rule here at Smile and Mobile. Blackberry is out of the game because they forgot to …………………….Stay Mobile

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7rLtvq5LC4s

Smile and Mobile review the language app Na-Asu Igbo. This app is designed to help give beginners a better understanding of the igbo language. It was created by the Ikenga Development Group at http://ikengadevgroup.org

http://smileandmobile./2013/09/11/african-app-review-series-episode-3-na-asu-igbo/

http://smileandmobile./2013/09/04/made-in-africa-african-fashion-retailers-giddimint-and-heel-the-world-make-their-move/

The business of online fashion is well established in the United States. Most American brick and mortar retailers have an online presence. Charles Thyrwitt, Men’s Wearhouse, Victoria’s Secret are just a few of these established companies with strong internet presence. The internet revolution has also made it possible for strictly online retailers to achieve considerable success, by reducing the operational cost of the business and allowing entrepreneurs to focus on sourcing products from all over the world.

Nigerian Entrepreneurs identified this gap in the African market, and the guys who brought you the Iroko media empire have decided to dabble in the online fashion space with a new startup Giddimint. Actually to be specific, Spark Incubator is the company making the investment, but as our regular readers know, Spark incubator is co-owned by the founders of Iroko. What does Giddimint do? They sell Urban Tee shirts inspired by African art and Culture, think of it as an African version of Threadless or Mixunit.

available for purchase at Giddimint

They recently signed the very popular Nigerian singer Bez as an official Merchandise partner, as they look to increase market share in the online fashion retail space. The “Tee shirt economy” can be very lucrative if done right. It has had varied success in the United states. Some companies like college humour have made millions of dollar from their t shirt business, while others barely turned a profit. Giddimint hopes to be another African success story, and with their high powered investors the chances are highly in their favor

Two countries over in Ghana, an online shoe retailer boasting authentic hand made shoes is creating a buzz. Heel the world boasts, authentic, bespoke and handmade shoes made right there in Ghana. These African designed shoes are sleek, expensive looking and serve as another example of how the internet has facilitated the presentation of African creativity and innovation to the world.

available for purchase at Heel the World

Made in Africa? you bet you are ass they are, and with companies like giddimint and heeltheworld we expect this phrase to be very common in the upcoming years……………………Stay Mobile

http://smileandmobile./2013/08/29/the-next-youtube-millionaire-could-come-out-of-nigeria-ghana-senegal-or-uganda/

What do Sxephil, happyslip, awkwardblackgirl have in common? They are all American Vloggers (video bloggers) and Youtube Partners that have successfully created very lucrative careers making video content for Youtube. In 2012, Google announced that the top partners were making over $23,000/month on Ads alone!!! This does not include, the money they make on their various websites and other affiliated businesses. Yes ladies and gentlemen, top Youtube performers make more money than Doctors and Investment Bankers!

So how can you make this type of money? Well first you have to be a Youtube partner, and this will allow you monetize your video. In the past becoming a youtube partner was very difficult, you had to be selected by youtube based on your viewership. Today it is much easier as long as it is available in your region. The Youtube Partner Program is only available in a select number of countries around the world. In Africa, only people living in South Africa can take advantage of this program. All this is about to change as Google just announced they are expanding the partner program to 4 more African countries! People living in Nigeria, Ghana, Uganda and Senegal will now be able to monetize their videos and make some sweet Naira, Cedis, Shilling, CFA and even some dollars . We have already seen African bloggers like Nigeria’s Linda Ikeji obtain considerable success online through blogging, now it is only a matter of time before we start to see successful vloggers all over the continent. This could also be a game changer in the film industry! Nollywood film makers might even be able to generate their own revenue without needing to use online distributors like Irokotv.

So people of Nigeria, Ghana, Uganda and Senegal, join the Youtube Partner program, get those cameras out, make sure the lighting is right, and as always………………………………Stay Mobile!

http://smileandmobile./2013/08/26/2186/

We told you about the Kite Patch, a new innovative mosquito repellent device that makes you invisible to mosquitoes. Now if you didn’t get that patch and the anopheles mosquito was able to locate you, you might have malaria. But how will you know for sure? The Conventional way is to go to the hospital, and get your blood drawn for analysis. Getting pricked by a needle all the time is never fun, I know I don’t like getting pricked all the time. That is why a group of developers (Code out of Uganda, have figured out a way around this with their new windows app, Matibabu. Matibabu which stands for “treatment” in Swahili, offers a quick way to diagnose malaria without the need to draw blood. This windows app makes use of a specially designed device known as a Matiscope. All the user needs to do is insert his or her finger into this Matiscope, which is connected to the windows phone. You click on the diganose button on the Matibabu app and it will send a series of red light signals to penetrate the skin and detect red blood cells.

ImageImage

This is a great app and an excellent example of African entrepreneurs, designing products to satisfy African needs. Apparently many people agree, as Matibabu won the women’s empowerment award at the imagine cup in Russia this year! So great job Code 8, your Matibabu app is a great example of African innovation and determination……………………………………Stay Mobile!

http://smileandmobile./2013/08/20/watch-out-silicon-valley-african-tech-hubs-are-on-the-rise/

Technology is the catalyst that sparks change in any society. Throughout history there is one common theme, any country that experiences a technological revolution also enjoys a subsequent economic transformation. Happened in America, happened in Japan, happened with the Asian Tigers (Hong Kong, Singapore,South Korea, Taiwan). So it is no surprise that today most countries have been shelling out a considerable percentage of their budget to build and support Tech cities or hubs. These hubs are clusters of Technology companies, inventors, suppliers,investors and designers with the right infrastructure to flourish. Silicon Valley is one of the best known tech clusters in the world. With Venture capital in this northern California hub valued at over $11B. Boston boasts a similar Tech hub and other large world hubs can be found in France (Paris), Russia (Skokolvo city), India (Bangalore) and relative newcomers China (Beijing)

Africa has figured out the need for these tech hubs, and as a result there has been significant investment in various countries in Africa, from Tinapa Knowledge city in Nigeria to the the planned Konza City in Kenya and Botswana innovation hub. Africa is building for the technical revolution, and most major cities are building hubs for innovators to share ideas and build businesses

Below is a list of some of the Tech Hubs that we know about in Africa. If you know of more feel free to post them in the comments. The continent is changing rapidly, so as a result, this list will not be static, it will definitely be……………….Staying Mobile

Ethiopia

Ice Addis

iceaddis is a University-based innovation hub, incubator and co-working space for communities. We contribute to Ethiopia’s economic growth by tightening the constructive interaction between researchers, developers, entrepreneurs, creative workers and customers and by promoting local technological solutions to the public.

South Africa

Soft Start Innovation

Business incubation – like the name suggests it has to do with business growth. South Africa is a country with massive potential and possibilities. That potential is recognised, and therefore Softstart BTI as well as other Incubators have been established to assist with this growth.

Mlab

mLab Southern Africa (SA) is a mobile solutions laboratory and startup accelerator that provides entrepreneurs and mobile developers with the support they need to develop innovative mobile applications and services.

Botswana

Bostwana Innovation Hub

The Botswana Innovation Hub is under development at a strategic location in Gaborone near the (SSK) International Airport and is to be a national center of excellence for innovation in key priority areas – being ICT, Mining Technology, Bio-Technology, and Energy/Environment. This is in line with the enhancement of Botswana’s international competitiveness and the prospects for economic diversification and downstream job creation.

Uganda

The Hub

@The HUB Kampala is a collaboration space for creative, like-minded enterprising people. This unique workspace offers daily, weekly and monthly work and meeting space for freelancers, independent consultants, entrepreneurs, designers, artists, journalists.

Egypt

Plug and play Egypt

PlugandPlay is Egypt’s first company accelerator, targeted at finding, selecting, and accelerating the growth of next generation of high-impact technology entrepreneurs.

(Tahrir)2

Tahrir² is all about helping young entrepreneurs to get their startups in real business world. we offer funding, mentor-ship , co-working area and productive atmosphere . We believe that everything is possible when brilliant minds are gathered in one place. Pushing up the economy by encouraging young talents is our main purpose, moving these talents from startup stage to professional stage is our profit and seeing our country’s development is our joy

Nigeria

Mina Incubation Center

Technology Incubation Center Minna was established on 21st April 1998. It became operational August, 1998 with six (6) incubation units and five (5) pioneering Incubates. Since establishment the Center has received the total of 141 application for incubation but only seventy have been incubated and thirty eight (38) graduated. Currently the center is monitoring five non-resident incubates within Minna Metropolitan.

Co Creation hub

CcHUB is Nigeria’s first open living lab and pre-incubation space designed to be a multi-functional, multi-purpose space where work to catalyze creative social tech ventures take place. The HUB is a place for technologists, social entrepreneurs, government, tech companies, impact investors and hackers in and around Lagos to co-create new solutions to the many social problems in Nigeria.

L5labs

L5Labs offers its portfolio companies:

* Strategic management support & CEO Mentoring

* Financing

* Office space and other administrative support services

Some of our helpful relationships

MTN Nigeria

L5Lab has a relationship with MTN Nigeria to be enable portfolio companies launch and monetize mobile-related products via the MTN app store, premium SMS or other channels.

Ghana

mFriday Lab

The mFriday Lab combines teams of talented ICT developers, faculty members, and business school students from the public and private universities to identify challenges and opportunities, create appropriate projects, and launch successful companies for economic growth and sustainable jobs in Ghana.

Meltwater entrepreneurial School of Technology

The Meltwater Entrepreneurial School of Technology – or MEST – was established in Accra, Ghana, through the non-profit Meltwater Foundation, with the aim of creating jobs and wealth locally in Africa by training young Africans to become software entrepreneurs. During the intensive two-year program at MEST, Entrepreneurs in Training (EITs) work with experienced business executives, university graduates and current MBA students from top universities worldwide to develop software applications and prepare them for launch in the global marketplace.

Ivory Coast

AMN Co Working space

Our coworking space is a collaborative workspace where to meet passionate and professional web development, media, communication and others.

The objectives of this laboratory are many new technologies:

Allowing workers , through the collaborative work to improve their expertise in their chosen field and to build a network of contacts ;

Enable investors and project developers to find a suitable space for their projects, as well as skilled and competent resourcess;

Provide event organizers a perfect setting for their events;

Supporting freelancers and start-ups in their growth ( about it please consult the tab “Our community);

At our level, create (and maintain) a dynamic innovation in the Ivorian web.

Liberia

iLab

iLab Liberia is a non-profit computer laboratory providing access to cutting-edge technology, expert IT assistance and a community leveraging technology for the good of Liberia.

Burkina Faso

Yam Pukri

Yam Pukri is an association dedicated to education, information and advice for new technologies. It exists since 1998 in Burkina Faso and undertakes numerous activities. These webs pages summarize its focus and its actions in Burkina Faso.

Kenya

Ihub Nairobi

It is part open community workspace (co-working), part vector for investors and VCs and part incubator. We also have a number of initiatives designed to build an ecosystem around the Kenyan tech entrepreneur: iHub Research, iHub Consulting, iHub Supercomputing Cluster, and the iHub User Experience (UX) Lab. We’re trying to create the place where seeds are planted and are easily found by the people with money to help them grow.

Fab Lab Nairobi

Fablab (fabrication laboratory or “fabulous laboratory”) is a workshop with an array of computer controlled tools with the aim to make “almost anything”. Here at the lab people meet to interact and share ideas as they work on their projects.

http://smileandmobile./2013/08/16/african-app-review-episode-2-mutata-ugandan-card-game/



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2EdCANdYbpE

In this video we review that app Matatu. The app was developed by Kola Studios in Uganda: http://www.kolastudios.com

http://smileandmobile./2013/08/13/travel-300-miles-in-just-30min-this-could-happen-very-soon-hyperloop-elonmusk/

What is this I hear Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk released a plan for a futuristic transportation idea called the Hyperloop. What he is proposing, is the transportation of traveler on a car inside a tube with reduced air pressure. The reduced air pressure will allow the cart to go at speeds close to the speed of sound, reminiscent of how George Jetson use to get around. Similar to how Georgi koskov got out of Czechoslovakia in the move in living daylight! (for all you bond fanatics out there!)

Los Angeles to San Francisco is a 6 hour drive (if you are following the speed limit!). With California traffic, it could be 6.5 hours. You can get their in 1.5 hours if you go by air, but then you have to buy your ticket online, get to the airport 30 minutes before take off. Stand in line to remove your belt, shoes, earrings and even toothpaste at security. Then lounge around in the waiting area until you are asked to board. What about trains?? forget about it. Isn’t it time for innovation in Mass transportation? Think about it, trains have been around since the 1800s, earlier if you consider their predecessor, the wagonways. The invention of automobiles can also be traced back to the 15th century when the likes of Da Vinci and many other learned gentlemen were designing transportation conduits. Of course, we all know the Wright brothers innovated the first airplane way back in 1907. So what next? Teleporting, just like in the movie star trek?

Well that might be a little too ambitious for 2013, but we at Smile and Mobile believe that it is time for America to get ambitious again. Maybe teleporting might be a few decades aways, but transporting us in a tube can work!. If it is feasible, why don’t we do it? Why don’t we leap forward to new levels much like the wright brothers did in 1907. Right now in California they are trying implement high speed rail, with expected completion date of 2025!!!! So let me get this straight, in the year 2025, the United States of America will have upgraded the train system in its largest state to technology that China, Japan, France, South Korea and Russia have had for the past 20 years!!!!! You have got to be kidding me!

No! This is why we seriously have to take the Hyperloop idea seriously, it is a leap forward in mass transit. The tube will be powered by solar energy, and they could be constructed in the air or underground. You will be able to transport people from Los Angeles to San Francisco in 30 minutes, with a cart leaving the Hyperloop terminal every thirty seconds and America would be doing what it does best, blazing trails instead of playing copy cat. We endorse this idea at Smile and Mobile, not just because we think its freaking cool, but because it will allow us to do what we do best, and you know what that is…………………………………………..Stay Mobile (at the speed of sound!).

http://smileandmobile./2013/08/11/african-app-review-episode-1-video-efiko-mobile-quiz-platform/


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KLQ7ADmfI-o

Review of the Nigerian App Efiko. Efiko is a mobile social quiz platform made in Nigeria to help student improve their skills in Maths, Physics, English, Government etc

http://smileandmobile./2013/08/07/jumia-investors-looking-to-roll-out-taxi-hailing-service-in-nigeria-easytaxi/

According to the world bank, consumer spending plays a large part in Africa’s economic growth, and it is almost 5% higher than the world consumer spending average . Translation, Africans are getting wealthier and they have money to spend. Over the next 50 years, the middle class in Africa is expected to triple to over a billion people, and the Rocket Internet group recognizes this, as is very evident by their recent investments. Rocket internet is a venture capital incubator best known for clowning successful e-commerce businesses found in America, and implementing them in other countries. They successfully cloned Amazon.com in the philippines (lazada.com.ph) and Nigeria (). Now they are looking to launch an online taxi booking service in Nigeria. Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa with over 150 million people, and it boasts the most internet users on the continent, so it is no surprise they picked Nigeria to roll out this service.

Image

The service, Easy Taxi, has already been deployed in Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, Peru, Venezuela, Argentina, Chile, South Korea and Malaysia, and now it is landing in the Nigerian Market. Taxi hailing apps have had very little success in North America accounting for less than 1% of taxi use. However, we think this is a great idea for emerging markets like Nigeria. It is not always the easiest thing to find taxis in Nigeria, especially when you live in gated communities far away from the main roads. Armed with 10 million dollars in funding, the move into Nigeria is expected to be swift, and this has annoyed some Nigerian entrepreneurs who believe that the German based group has used the capital advantage to squash out local competition. No such complaints from consumers, who welcome the professionalism obtained from a well financed business. We tend to agree with the consumers, African entrepreneurs need to learn how to raise capital to grow their businesses, you need innovation to start, but you need capital to grow and if young Nigerians techies want to stay competitive their bank accounts better ……………..stay mobile! (in the right direction ;

http://smileandmobile./2013/07/23/new-mosquito-repellent-device-will-make-you-invisible-indeigogo-review/

Nobody likes mosquitoes, they are annoying, tiny little vampires. They land on your skin without you even noticing, and leave horrendous bumps when they have finished feasting on you blood muhahahahahah.

That is not even the worst part, the insufferable sound they give off whenever they are near you has to be their most annoying quality. You know they are around when you hear the buzz, but you also understand that there is nothing you can really do to keep them away………………….Or is there?

The team at the ieCrowd (Innovation economy Crowd) believe they have figured out the perfect answer. It is not the mosquito net, nor is it the the Raid or Sheltox bug spray. No, they believe they can repel Mosquitoes by making us all invisible! Calm down people, they have not invented Harry Potter’s cloak of invisibility. What they have invented is the Kite Patch, which they claim that when worn will make human beings undetectable to Mosquitoes for up to 48 hours. Mosquitoes usually track us by smelling the carbon dioxide we release when we breath, and the kite patch is suppose to disrupt that carbon dioxide, so that the mosquitoes cannot track us.

The jury is still out on whether this will be effective. I remember being overjoyed at the existence of the Mosquito repellent app for the iphone. I downloaded it before my last trip to Africa, and you know what, I think the app actually attracted the mosquitoes! But we will give the Kite patch a chance. If it works, it can help reduce the transmission of mosquito borne diseases like Malaria and Dengue Fever that are found in many countries across Africa and Asia, and the West Nile virus which has been expanding rapidly in the Americas.